- Opening WLG to see all the happy, grateful, vibrant posts
- Getting to know a friend’s foster dog while he was with her
- Watering all the plants before the wilting warning
- Vit D- however we can get it in the cloudy shadow of the Great Lakes
- Finding studies that guide decisions
- Like-minded friends to chat with during long events
- The right joke at the right time
- Drawing together
- Walks in the woods
- Unexpected visit from a friend and her daughter
- “Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.” -John Wooden
All posts by Crystal
Mary Ellen
Grateful for Mary Ellen, who told me about WLG not working as expected. Thank you!
Spring Weekend
- My writer’s group, which brings me endless joy, belonging, and support
- A weekend of laughter and friends
- Avoiding the worst of the windstorm
- Thankfully only a few small things were blown around the yard
- The 6′ jumps of the dog excited to see us after some time away
- Inside jokes with my favorite people
- Abundance in all directions
- Inspiring people in the form of everyday folks
- The detritus of play
- Warmth
Today’s Gratitude
- All the things I get to learn still on this big, glorious blue ball
- A generous researcher passing on her extra books
- Letting life be what it is
- Movement, legs swinging, crunchy autumnal leaves
- Friends who write better than my favorite authors, just by making a joke on the phone
- Delightful surprise- neighbor knock
- Slow productivity
- Taking joy in little bits, wherever it shows up
- Eye contact
- May we all sometimes have a bit of kalopsia- the delusion that things are more beautiful than they are
Grateful
- Visit from an old friend- and slipping back into closeness like no time had passed
- Mercurial light of the waning moon
- The 20lbs of canine love that inspires midnight trips outside
- Gifts- of shoes, clothes- secondhand delights me more than brand new
- Meeting up with a new friend, the delight of learning her history, hearing her stories
- Furry synthetic blended pullover that traps all the heat that the chilly autumn air threatens to whisk away
- Fiery red leaves set in golden trees
- Footsteps crunching through color
- Frost on each blade of grass
- Noticing
Thursday Gratitude
- My gratitude practice, which sustains me
- Breathing techniques & apps
- A writing group full of writers I love
- A long walk in the woods
- The dog, who instigates walks
- The way glaciers are like ice skates- melting ice at the point of pressure to make things glide
- A morning slowly unfolded
- The energy pulsing in two hands, ten fingers
- Red ribbons snapping in the wind
- Cars buzzing, airplanes whirring, trains rumbling- the soundtrack to a day’s rhythms
Grateful
- A Thanksgiving of Matriarchs
- Letting go of things to make room to breathe in the schedule
- Moments- butterfly kisses, holding hands, laughter
- Pre-bedtime dance party
- Elves and fairies and Santa, oh my
- A houseful of music
- Knowing someone well
- Choosing a different (neuro)pathway
- Snow flurries in the porch light
- Katharine, who always remembers <3
Summer
- Hot pink hibiscus
- Lush unmowed grass
- Chlorine-infused water
- Fat robins
- Tall-antlered deer
- New freckles
- Dusty air
- Cold-grass mornings
- Outdoor music
- Laughter
Thank you
- The opportunity to be alive
- And to use my voice
- And to stand up for what I believe
- All the opportunities I have to argue for my truth
- Becoming less reactive, more resolute
- Loving anyway, in the way no one can stop me
- Making new choices, instead of the status quo
- Inventing my own future
- Living into it
- And up to it
Gratitude
- New puppy in the house
- Deep dive into a whole new world of training and attentiveness
- No longer taking time for granted, for awhile at least
- Warm just-rained air
- When the mosquitoes take a rain break
- Pausing
- Deep breaths
- Gearing up for a big week
- After a full week of activity- so this moment to pause and be grateful is an exhale
- Noticing